Coke
by Louise Hargadon
Summary: Short, fluffy missing scene type oneshot from Episode 1.10, Asylum. Dean and Kat have both had a lousy day, and all they want is a well-deserved drink. Kat quickly discovers, however, that although you can't always get what you want, you do sometimes get exactly what you need...


_**A/N:** I've literally only seen ten episodes of Supernatural and I totally would have waited until I'd caught up completely before attempting any fanfiction, but I've been watching it with a very lovely friend of mine (I'm too scared to watch it alone!), and I shipped Dean and Kat so hard during this episode that she asked me if I'd write a missing scene fic about them. I couldn't resist! She was like a female!Dean, I loved her to bits. So, my apologies if I get anything wrong character-wise or anything, I'm totally new to this wonderful new world of the Winchesters!_

_Also, Gavin and Kat's ages were slightly ambiguous in the episode. I thought they were both in their early 20s, and after checking _IMDB _it turns out that the actors were, but their characters were meant to be teenagers. For the purposes of the story they're both 21._

_Dedicated with much love and huge hugs to _**Alunarpurest**_, without whom I would never have plucked up the courage to fully immerse myself in the awesomeness that is this incredible show._

_**Disclaimer:** _**Supernatural** _was created by _**Eric Kripke**_. I own nothing, not even the DVDs. All I have is an overwhelming adoration for the beautiful _**Dean Winchester**_ and his fanfiction-green eyes, but there again I am only human._

**Coke**

"So, do... you... want to talk about it?" Gavin asked, eventually. There had been a stony, heavy silence in the car between them during the entire journey and he couldn't bear it any longer. He caught sight of Kat's facial expression as she reacted to his question and he wished he'd never opened his mouth.

"What exactly do you want to talk about, Gavin?" Kat demanded. "Hmm? Do you want to talk about the fact you nearly got us both killed? Or would you rather talk about the fact that you thought you'd save twenty bucks on the movies by taking me to that place? Or maybe you'd like to talk about the fact that even after I'd asked several times if we could leave, you insisted on staying? I swear to God, if it hadn't been for Sam and Dean - you and I would not be alive to have this conversation."

"I was just trying to -"

"To what? What the hell were you actually trying to do?" she shouted. He opened his mouth to answer but she held up an index finger to stop him. "Listen, you know what? I don't even want to know. Pull up," she said, throwing her hands up in frustration. Gavin silently pulled over and she opened the passenger door.

"I'll call you later," Gavin said. She glared at him.

"Don't."

"But, Kat!" he began.

"Goodbye, Gavin," she said, slamming the door shut with some considerable force as she stormed off. Gavin hung his head and let out a heavy sigh. He knew he deserved nothing less than her reaction. He just hoped that there might eventually be some way of making it up to her - but he had absolutely no idea what it would take for her to ever calm down long enough to speak to him again.

Kat hadn't really frequented bars since she turned 21 seven months earlier, and she definitely knew better than to go into a bar alone at night. After everything she had been through that day, she decided that the very least she deserved was a nerve-calming beer. She walked into the nearest bar, struggled to get up onto the stool, and after some considerable exertion, she let out a sigh of relief before looking at the bartender, who had been watching her barstool-related struggles with great interest.

"Whatever it is, just make it large," she said, wearily. The bartender nodded and poured her out a large Coca-Cola. "What the hell is this?" she demanded, pointing to the offending glass. The bartender shrugged.

"No ID, no alcohol," he answered. She rolled her eyes.

"Great. Y'know what? This day is just getting better every minute," she said, bitterly. She took a long swig of her Coke and sighed heavily. "I guess it's better than nothing."

"Ma'am, if you could move away from the bar area," the bartender said, pointing to a sign informing her that minors were not permitted at the bar. She glared at him.

"You just try moving me. I dare you," she snapped. He held his hands up in defeat and left her to stare into her drink. He supposed that she wasn't doing anyone any harm if she stayed where she was. She didn't even look like she'd ever been in a bar before in her life. Besides, he had too many glasses to polish to care about where anyone sat.

Dean and Sam drove towards their motel in a cold silence, until Dean let out a growl of frustration and pulled over.

"What's up with you?" Sam asked, frowning. Dean's eyes widened.

"What's up with me?" he asked. A million words choked at the back of his throat. All he could hear in his head were the things Sam had said to him, all the hate, all the bile, all the vitriol just spewing in Dean's direction in an overwhelming torrent. The false accusations, the impugned wrong motives - all of it hurt infinitely more than the ache in his chest where he had been shot at point blank range with rock salt.

He wanted to tell Sam that whatever he had said, even if he had been under the control of something else at the time - whatever it was, he had been wrong. All Dean had ever done since the moment Sam had been born was love him. Maybe he hadn't shown it in the way Sam had wanted him to, maybe he had been too tough on him at times - but none of that changed the way he felt. Even now they were both grown up, every time Dean looked at Sam, all he could see was a little boy that needed his big brother to protect him.

Dean clamped his lips together as he looked Sam in the eyes. His throat and chest ached with the weight of the words he couldn't bring himself to say to him. He swallowed hard and looked away.

"Nothin'. You drive. I'm goin' for a walk," he said, taking the key out of the ignition and tossing it to Sam. Sam caught it and looked up at him, his facial expression the dictionary definition of incredulity.

"Dean, I said I'm sorry," he began. "I couldn't help it." Dean nodded once.

"I heard you," he answered, grimly. "I'll see you back at the motel," he finished, getting out of the car and shutting the door firmly behind him. He paused, let out a heavy sigh and walked away. It had been a long day, and all Dean wanted right at that moment was something cold, wet and alcoholic. He looked across the street and saw a small bar, and headed over to it.

"Whatever it is, just make it large," he said to the bartender as he sat on his bar stool. The bartender frowned at him, a little surprised by the phrase.

"Are you two together?" he asked, pointing to the girl sat next to him. Dean shook his head, a little baffled by the bartender's question, and didn't even bother looking at the girl beside him.

"I just got here," he said, looking completely nonplussed. The girl turned to him and let out a gasp of surprise.

"Dean!" she said. Dean's confusion mounted.

"Kat, what are you doing here?" he asked. He had been so busy concentrating on getting rid of the ghost of Doctor Ellicott that he hadn't had time to even think how she must have felt about the whole episode. He thought that if he had just been through what she had, with no prior knowledge or experience of supernatural beings, the first thing he would want afterwards would be a large drink. He looked at her glass and felt a little sorry for the fact she only had a Coke.

"Could ask you the same thing," she answered. He raised an eyebrow.

"I asked first."

"I broke up with Gavin," she said. Dean nodded and let out a breath of laughter.

"I don't blame you for that," he answered, a slow smile spreading over the right half of his face. She frowned and looked away from him and he paused, trying to think of something more practical to say to her. "You're a good shot," he said. She frowned. "You only just missed me before."

"Oh, that! I'm sorry, Sam told me to-"

"It's fine," Dean answered, holding his hand up to stop her. "I've had enough apologies today."

"What do you mean?" she asked, looking at him. He returned her gaze and didn't reply for a few moments.

"Nothin'."

The bartender handed Dean a cold beer which he promptly swigged back. Kat couldn't help but look at his profile as he drank. His long eyelashes, his strong, slightly stubbled jawline, his long neck and the curve of his throat. A rogue droplet of beer trickled down his chin and slowly continued down his neck and Kat suddenly caught herself imagining licking it off him. She blushed bright red and shook her head quickly to get the thought out of her mind before downing the rest of her Coke in four gulps.

Dean wiped the excess beer from his lips with the back of his hand and looked at Kat.

"You want another of those?" he asked, pointing to her empty glass. She hesitated for a moment before looking back at him. She hadn't realised quite how green his eyes were before.

"I, umm... sure. Thank you," she answered, pushing her glass towards the other side of the bar. Dean glanced at the bartender, nodded and pointed to Kat's glass. The bartender dutifully refilled her glass and, after taking another swig that she didn't especially want, she looked up at Dean. "So, umm... how did you and Sam get involved in... what you do?" she asked.

"It's a long story," he said, shaking his head. "Sam only came back to it six months ago," he added.

"Why'd he come back?" she asked. He shrugged.

"I asked him to," he answered. She raised her eyebrows and paused, not even knowing if there was an appropriate response to his answer.

"I don't think I'd get involved with anything like that just because my brother asked me to," she said. "You two must be real close." Dean looked at her, frowning slightly.

"We must be," he said, a little sarcastically. His tone was understandably lost on Kat. "Anyway, you went into a haunted asylum just because your boyfriend asked you to," he pointed out. She rolled her eyes.

"I only wanted to go to the movies. He thought he was being... I dunno. Weirdly romantic," she said, shrugging helplessly. Dean chuckled.

"The guy's got an even more screwed-up idea of romance than I do!" he said, shaking his head and bringing his beer bottle back to his lips. He hesitated for a moment before drinking, his lips lightly touching the rim of the bottle. Kat bit her lip slightly, thinking something so inappropriate she didn't even want to admit to herself what had just gone through her mind. She blushed again and forced herself to think of something else.

"What are you going to do now?" she asked. He downed the rest of his beer, set the empty bottle on the counter and let out a sigh.

"I'm gonna go with 'get drunk'," he answered. She grinned.

"Lucky you," she said, dryly. He chuckled again.

"What are you going to do?" he asked. She looked at her half-empty glass and pouted.

"I'm gonna go with 'not get drunk'," she answered, raising one eyebrow. "I guess I'll go home. Sleep with the lights on for a few years. Don't you get scared, facing guys like that all the time?" she asked. He crinkled his nose and shook his head, his lower lip jutting out a little.

"Nah."

"Why not?" she asked, raising her eyebrows in surprise.

"I guess I don't have time to think about it," he answered, taking his next bottle of beer from the bartender and knocking it back. She frowned. They sat in silence as she finished her drink.

"I should go," she said. "Two Cokes is usually my limit," she joked. He looked up at her and smiled slowly, his eyes gleaming.

"What happens after three?" he asked, raising an eyebrow. She giggled and he bit his lip slightly as he smiled back at her. At first she thought he was flirting with her but she quickly dismissed the idea out of hand.

"Oh, you don't wanna know, it gets messy!" she said, carelessly. He looked her up and down twice, his lips slightly pursed.

"I can take messy," he answered. She swallowed hard and tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear. He _was_ flirting with her!

"I know you can," she said with a smile. They locked eyes and held each other's gaze for a few moments too long, each hoping that the other would make the first move, but neither quite prepared to do so. Finally, Kat slid off her barstool and took a step closer to him. "Thanks, Dean."

"It was just a Coke," he said quietly, not breaking eye contact as he leaned in closer to her. Almost involuntarily, she leaned in towards him. She looked from his eyes to his lips four times before finally replying.

"I think we both know it was more than a Coke," she answered. He grinned wickedly at her, his eyes gleaming.

"It can be," he said, his voice low and his tone meaningful. Kat briefly clamped her lips together and hesitated for a moment before pressing her lips gently against his. He returned her kiss tenderly, slipping his hand underneath her jacket and digging his fingertips gently into her hip. She finally pulled away and gazed at him for a few moments.

"Thank you," she whispered. She brushed her lips lightly against his once more before walking out of the bar, heading for the nearest bus stop. The cold air outside instantly cooled her burning cheeks and neck, which she was grateful for, but her lips still tingled with the taste of his kiss.

Dean watched her walk away and smiled ruefully. He hadn't realised how badly he had needed a small moment of affection like that. He cleared his throat and sniffed loudly, refusing to allow his thoughts to wander any further down the melancholy path they had taken. There was no time for that. He had things to do. He had to find his father, he had to get back to his brother. There were still a lot of evil things out there that he needed to kill. Not just for the sake of innocent people like Kat, but for his own sake too. There could be no time for self-pity.

"You want another beer, buddy?" the bartender asked. Dean opened his mouth to say yes, but something inside made him change his mind.

"Better make it a Coke, pal," he answered with a grin.

**THE END**


End file.
